City of Bartlett settles old lawsuit over Brother Boulevard right of way

The Bartlett Board of Mayor and Aldermen agreed Tuesday night to settle a long-standing lawsuit regarding the extension of Brother Boulevard by paying the previous owner $244,000.

The board unanimously approved the settlement with Ellis Road L.P., ending almost 12 years of negotiations regarding a fair price the city should pay for the right of way to construct a stretch of Brother between Appling and Germantown Road.

Construction was done in the late 1990s, and the two sides were unable to agree on a price for the property the city needed for the road. The city acquired the land in front of Brother International through condemnation.

"After 12 years of negotiations, it has been determined to be in the best interest of the city of Bartlett and Ellis Road L.P. to settle this dispute, with the city of Bartlett payment of an additional $244,000 as compensation for the taking," the resolution approved by the board stated.

The money will come from the general fund reserves.

Jay Rainey, the city's chief administrative officer, said the dispute involved about 2.5 acres. The city initially paid $111,000 to Ellis Road L.P. for the property, but the owners disagreed with the amount, sending the matter into a legal showdown.

Through the years, the sides got more appraisals for the land and still could not come up with a settlement.

Recently, Rainey said, the city decided to try and resolve the matter. The sides negotiated the price and eventually came up with an agreed amount for the land. But the city also was required to pay 10 percent interest on the money for more than a decade.

One more round of offers finally reached the $244,000 amount, which was presented to the board in a closed-door meeting -- because of the attorney-client privilege in the state Sunshine Law.